Building construction



Jan. 9, 1940.` W, s. RUGG ET AL I BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Filed Feb. 29, 1936 5 Sheets-Shel#I 1 Jan-9, 1940. w. s. RUGG Er Al. 2,186,840'

` BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Filed Feb. 29, 1956 3 sheets-sheet 2 Jan- 9 1940' w. s. RLJGG ET AL l 2,186,840

BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Patentedian. 9, 1940 i n. 2,186,840A

. UNITED. STATES r'reur .rrice BUILDING CONSTRUCTION i Walter S. Rugg and Henry D. James,

Pittsburgh, Pa.

Application February 29, 1936, Serial No. 66,435

6 Claims. (Cl. 189-1) The present invention rentes to a building Figs. e, e and 10 meviewsin perspective, with construction and more particularly to a construcparts brolrcn avv'ay, of structural elements shown tion of the multiple-unit type the units o1" which in `the preceding figures;

are largely pre-fabricated before shipment to the Fig. 'il is a View in horizontal sectionyshowing building site. further details of the construction embodying f5 Considerable work has been done heretofore on the invention; and the so-called pre-fabricated type of building, but `Fig. l2 is a fragmentary top View of a modified such Work has been generally unacceptable to unit shown in Figs. 3 and 7. prospective Customers, except for cheaper grades Referring more specically to the drawings',

1., of houses, garages, etc. The size to which such the building structure comprises a foundation or di) structures could be safely erected was limited, other support (such as i? in lig. 5)k having an H- there was a lack of attention to proper thermal beam Il resting thereon and suitably secured insulation, the method of securing the outer or thereto with a relatively Wide upper 'bearing surfacing material was more or less unsightly and face for supporting the Wall units and oor inconvenient to apply, and the overall appearbeams 6. 15 ance of the structure was such that it was gen- Each of the licor beams t comprises a, met-a1, erally unacceptable in competition with buildings girder of I-shape having one end'thereof resting or homes built in the conventional manner. upon the l-l-lcearnl 4, at right angles thereto, and

The only alternative, to the prospective builder, having portions of the upper ange out` away gg is to resort to usual construction Amethods involvas indicated in Fig. l0, for the purpose -hereintgp ing a substantial labor expense and a long peafter described.` y

riod, oi uncertain duration, for erecting the build- The primary element of each building unit ing. comprises a one-piece structural iron armework It is an object of the present invention to pro- 'of open or crate construction, inade of angle 5 vide an improved building structure and method irons ill 'Welded at their points or juncture as in' of erecting and assembling it Which overcomes .dicated in Fig. 8. All of the angle irons .tace in4 the objectionable features of known structures wardly, toward the center of the framework and and methods; `Wldchvresults in a rigid structure constitute a readily portable and unusuallyrigid which is economical to Construct and erect; construction. lf for any reascnincreased rigidity 3o WhlCll lerldS itself readily t0 lll@ lFOduCtiOn 0f and strength is required, bracing members may 39 buildings, dwellings, and the like, Competitive in be provided, such as angle strips i2, Welded or appearance with usual architectural designs; otherwise Secured thereto. which may be readily taken'apart, Without dam- As Shown in Fig. 2, each building unit, or age to the parts, to facilitate alteration oi lthe framework, is mounted upon the supporting H- 5, building Shape 0f I'GDSI' and replacement of the beam d with the lower corners thereof upon the 35 parts; and which has coinplete'thermal insulation lower flange of a oor beam 6; the cut-away between the interior and exterior Walls thereof. upper flange or which permits the :trarne edges to Other Aobjects, of the invention will be apparent `he against the web 0f the beam 5, f from the vfollowing description read in conjuno-y Bolts lil, or other suitable means, are the ,49 tion With'the accompanying drawings Wlle'en used to clamp the lower angle members lil, vthe .40

Figure l is a View in vertical section as viewed lower flange of -beam l and the upper flange from the rear ol' a Wall unit in accordance with or H boam t in rigid relation, Further, bolts the present invention; iii, extend through the side angle members lil,

Fig. 2 is 'a View in section ytaken on 'the line the web' of beam t ,and the side angle of anad- 45 I--Il 0f Fig. l; `jacent frame unit, to rigidly connect adjacent .45

Fig. 3 is a view in ksection taken on 'thev line units, Ill-III oi" Fig. l; A bracingmenibcr i2, as shown in Fig. 2, is

Fig. 4 is a View in section taken on the line disposed transversely of the frame so that the. IV-IV Of Fis. 2; upper face is substantially level with the 4upper 50 Fig. 5 is a View in vertical section as viewed flange Qf beam e to constitute a Continuous 50 from the rear of a Wall unit of modified construcsupport for flooring it, and another member I2 tion; is lat the top of the frame to engageasiinilar Figs. 6 and 7 correspond to Figs. 2 and 8, taken member i2v at thel lower edge ofthe Vframe next on the lines VI-VI and VIL-A711 oi Fig. 5, reabove. I

55 spectively; f As shown in Fig. 1, spacing blocks or strips 20, mi

of any desired material, are preferably disposed between the framework and the H-beam 4, and between adjacent frames, to increase the rigidity of the structure, and permit, through the use of spacers of selected thickness, proper alignment of all elements of the structure to compensate for manufacturing discrepancies.

When the frame units are in position, or a desired number of them, the outer surface of the wall is covered with facing units 22 of desired construction but preferably of a size corresponding to the length and width of the frame units, or multiples of such dimensions. As shown in Fig. 3, a facing unit may comprise, for example, and not by way of limitation, an outer surface 24 of a tough weather-resistant material the face of which may be cut or otherwise marked to simulate stone, brick, or any desired nish, and a layer of ller 26 of thermal insulating material. The portions 24 and 26 are formed integrally and sheets so formed are readily available. It is intended, however, that any desired material may be employed for this purpose without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, the units 22 may consist of a metal sheet having thermal insulation` on its inside and a weatherproof surface attached to the outside, or as indicated in Fig. l2, the facing unit may comprise a sheet metal `oase or rear face 2l which carries with it thermal insulation and weather-resistant material as in Fig. 3. Clips 29 may then be employed to clamp the unit to the structural members I, as indicated.

One method of securing the facing units to the frame is shown in Fig. 3, comprising an elongated strip 28, of at least the length of the units for overlying the joint between adjacent units. Each strip is provided, integrally therewith, with a longitudinal flange 3i] (Fig. 9) for insertion between the adjacent units, and apertured projections 32 extending beyond such flange. Such projections 32 are of sufficient length to project, when the strip is in operative position, beyond the edge of the front frame membersI i9 to expose each aperture for the reception of a pin, wedge, or other desired instrumentality 34, to draw the strip firmly against the face of the facing units 22 in weather tight relation. Preferably the strips 2S are of non-metallic material having a low thermal conductivity. However, if the strip 28 and its flange 30 are metallic, the projecting portions 32 are :rf insulating material secured to the iiange 3U by U-shaped rivets 3S, as indicated in Fig. 9. By reason of either type of construction, there is no path for exterior ambient temperatures to be conducted through the wall to the interior of the building, as is the case with all structures of this general character of which we have knowledge. If the strips 28 were not thermally insulated, the outside temperature would be conducted through them into the framework I6 and the interior wall to such extent that the advantage oi heat insulation in the facing unit, or behind it, is largely vitiated, and moisture would condense on the interior structure. Additional strips of the same material as the strips 28 may extend horizontally across the face of the panels and be secured thereto by clamping their ends under the face of adjacent strips 28, to subdivide the surface into any desired patern.

Another method of securing facing units to the frames Ill is shown in Figs. 5, and 7. Here the unit t3 comprises a face 42 of weather resistant material and thermal insulation dll, and is provided with blocks 46, of a material suitable to hold stud bolts or screws 48, molded into the unit in position to align with apertures in clamping strips 5U. As shown, the ends of the strips 50 overlie the flat inner faces of the strips Hl so that when the studs are screwed down the plate 48 is drawn firmly against the frame. It is possible by this oonstruction to obtain a tight buttjoint between the edges of adjacent plates 40, but to further insure a weather-tight fit, the insulation layer 44 may be bevelled to provide space for suitable caulking, cement, or the like, 52, which is applied before the plates are clamped, the bevelled construction insuring that the material 52 will be compressed and properly distributed.

As indicated in Fig. 6, certain of the floor beams 6 may be extended beyond the face of the wall to constitute a support for a porch, thereby tying in the porch construction with the rest of the building in a desired manner. Obviously, as many of the wall units as desired may be provided with window sashes, door frames, etc., depending upon the architectural effect desired.

Thus far, the description has dealt with only the face of the building perpendicular to the fioor beams t. Walls at right angles thereto may be mounted in a similar manner, as shown in Fig. ll. A structural unit 60 for the corner of the building, comprises essentially two units such as lil at right angles and is pre-fabricated in a mannor smilar to the units i8. It consists of a plurality of angle strips 6l assembled and welded, to the shape shown, with suitable bracing strips 52 corresponding to the strips I2 oi the previous figures.

One leg of the corner unit 60 is secured to the adjacent unit IG and the end ol' the floor beam Si in the manner above described, and the other leg, constituting the beginning of a side wall extending rearwardly and to the left of the wall indicated in Figs. 3 and 7, is secured to an adjacent section l0 and the end of a short transverse I-bearn 63 the other end of which is secured, by angle plates 64 bolted or welded to the web of the main floor beam 6. Preferably the height of the transverse I-beam B3 is such that the inner end fits between the upper and lower flanges of the beam 6. The outer end of the beam 53 has its upper flange removed for insertion between the units l0 and Bil, as in the case of the beams il, it being understood that the numbei' of transverse beams 63 correspond to the number of panels or units constituting the side wall of the building.

Certain of the transverse beams may be extended through the wall structure to constitute a support for a porch or other outside structure, in which event the floor level of such structure will be slightly below that defined by the floor beams 6 which is desirable for weather-protective purposes.

It should be apparent, from the foregoing, that the construction described has many advantages. The open construction of the framework i3 permits the ready insertion of plumbing, wiring, etc. through the walls, and in fact provides a structure which may readily be used for ducts for air heating or conditioning. On the other hand. the open or crate-like construction facilitates the scouring of the facing units 22 and 40 to the framework. All of such fastening means being accessible only from inside the building, is in itself a substantial advantage facilitating the erection of the building and not being exposed to exterior Weather conditions.

It should also be apparent thatalthough the invention results in an unusually rigidl construction for this type of building, it may readily be disassembled for repair of :replacement ofv parts, or to alter or expand the structure as desired.

Quite obviously, various modifications may be ymade in the construction shown and described construction comprising a foundation support, a

Without departingvirom the invention, and it is vdesiredfthat the invention be limited only by the prior art and appended claims.

. We claim as our invention: l

1; A multiple unit wall assembly for a building plurality of structural elements and Imeans for mounting them in edge to edge relation on saidl support to constitute the framework for said wall,

' oor beams at right angles to a wailfof said foundation support each Ihaving an end portion extending between two adjacent structural `elements, and means for securing such elements thereto, a covering of weather resistant material for the outer surface of said wall and means for securing it to said structural elements, said floor beams having upper` and lower flanges with the upper ange of the end portion removed to permit insertion between adjacent structural elements, adjacent corners of said elements resting upon the lower flange of said end portion,

2. -In a multiple `unit wall assembly for a building construction lincluding a foundation shaped to support two walls at right angles to 'each other, aplurality of pre-fabricated structural elements disposed in edge-to-edge relation to constitute the framework of said walls, a plurality of iioor beams extending perpendicularly to one of said walls and having end portions interfitted betweenA adjacent structural elements, and short vbeams extending perpendicularly to said door beamshaving the outer ends thereof intertted between adjacent structural elements `of the other wall, and means for securingthe inner ends of i said short beams to a oor beam.

3. In a multiple unit wall assembly for a building construction including ay foundation shaped to support two vwalls at right angles to each other, a plurality of pre-fabricated structural elements disposed in edge-to-edge relation to constitute the frame work of said walls; a plurality of floor beams extending perpendicularly to one of said Walls and having end portions intertted'between adjacent structural' elements, and short beams extending 'perpendicularly to said floor beams'having the outer ends thereof intertted between adjacent structural elements of the other walls and having 'end portions interfitted between adjacentV 'structural elements, and short beams extending perpendicularly to said oor beams having the outer ends thereof intertted between' adjacent structural elements of the other Wall, v

and means for securing they inner ends of said short beamsto a floor beam, said short beams being of l,less height thanv the floor-beams.

5. In a multiple unit wall assembly for a buildingv construction includinga foundation shaped to support two walls at right angles to each other, a plurality ofpre-fabricated structural elements disposed in 'edge-to-edge relation to constitute the framework of said walls, a plurality of floor beams extending perpendicularly to one of said.y wallsy and, having end portions interitted between adjacent structural elements, and short beams extending perpendicularly to said floor beams having the outer ends thereofintertted between adjacent structural elements of theother wall,` i

and means for securingv the inner ends of said short beamsl to a iioor beam; certain of said short beams being extended beyond the faceof said other wall for supporting a structure on the outside of the wall. Y

6. In a multiple unit wall for abuilding construction, a plurality of .pre-fabricatedrstructural elements and means for mounting themto constitute the frame-work for a wall, a plurality of panels of weather-resistant material in sub-A stantially edge-to-edge relation constituting the y exterior surface for said wall, means for mounting said panels in such relation including means extending between adjacent panels and overlapping the joint therebetweenand having portions extending between adjacent structural units and.v

means for exerting a wedgi'ng action thereon to draw said panels firmly against the structural elements.

WALTER S, RUGG. HENRY D. JAMES. 

